Man, 18, Pleads Not Guilty in Collision Involving Officer

SUN VALLEY — An 18-year-old man accused of running down a Los Angeles police officer during an early-morning investigation pleaded not guilty Tuesday in San Fernando Municipal Court to three felonies, including driving under the influence and leaving the scene of an accident.

If convicted, Edgar Avitia faces 10 years in prison stemming from a collision that left Officer Jeff Smith, 30, in critical condition early Sunday at San Fernando Road and Tuxford Street. Two other men were also struck.

Smith, a three-year veteran assigned to the LAPD’s Foothill Division, suffered multiple broken bones after he was hit by a large four-door sedan. He is recovering at a local hospital and listed in serious but stable condition, LAPD spokesman Jason Lee said. The other men were treated for broken bones and released.

The officer and his partner were investigating an unrelated hit-and-run traffic accident when the speeding car hit Smith and the two witnesses.

Authorities said Avitia was arrested several miles from the scene when a private security officer followed his car to Branford Avenue and the Golden State Freeway and alerted police. Prosecutors said the defendant was driving with a blood-alcohol level above 0.08%, the legal limit in California.

Avitia is in custody at the Twin Towers jail in lieu of $85,000 bail. He will appear in San Fernando Municipal Court on Nov. 5 for a preliminary hearing.